Apparatus for trimming plumbing pipes below floor level

ABSTRACT

A plumbing pipe is initially rough cut to extend above the proposed floor level which is subsequently finished. A weighted cylindrical pilot member carries at least one cutting tool extending radially beyond the cylindrical wall a distance equal to or slightly greater than the wall thickness of the pipe. The pilot member includes a shank received by a hand drill or the like and is inserted into the opening in the pipe. The hand drill is then activated with the cutting tool in engagement with the pipe until the pipe is cut to a desired point below the finished floor level.

United States Patent 1191 Lomax et al.

1 APPARATUS FOR TRIMMING PLUMBING PIPES BELOW FLOOR LEVEL [76] inventors: Harold R. Lomax, 901 Cardinal Place, Thomasville, NC. 27360; Bobby K. Potts, R.F.D. 2, High Point, NC. 27460 22 Filed: Dec. 3, 1973 211 Appl. No.: 421,156

Related US. Application Data [62] Division of Ser. No. 236,901, March 22, 1971, Pat.

52 us. 01 408/1, 29/445, 90/125 51 1111.0 ..B23b 35/00 581 Field 01 Search 408/1, 80, 196; 12/11 c,

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 438,230 10/1890 Erd 408/196 1 Mar. 11, 1975 Primary Examiner- Gil Weidenfeld [57] ABSTRACT A plumbing pipe is initially rough cut to extend above the proposed floor level which is subsequently fin ished. A weighted cylindrical pilot member carries at least one cutting tool extending radially beyond the cylindrical wall a distance equal to or slightly greater than the wall thickness of the pipe. The pilot member includes a shank received by a hand drill or the like and is inserted into the opening in the pipe. The hand drill is then activated with the cutting tool in engagement with the pipe until the pipe is cut to a desired point below the finished floor level. I

PATENTEU W1 7 FIG. 2

FIG. 4

FIGS

APPARATUS FOR TRIMMING PLUMBING PIPES BELOW FLOOR LEVEL This is a division, of application Ser. No. 236,901 filed Mar. 22, l97l now US. Pat. No. 3,799,688.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION During the initial plumbing phases of building construction, the pipe connecting water closets to the sewer line is conventionally run up through the subflooring and cut off at a point 1 or 2 inches above the proposed finished floor level. After the finished flooring has been completed, the pipe is then cut down to a desired point below the floor level.

Previously, when terra cotta or cast iron pipes were in use there was no problem with this method, because the pipes at that time were cut off level with the finished floor and the water closet attached thereto as described in U.S. Pat. No. 1,476,983. However, with the advent of tile flooring and plastic (ABS) type, design changes have been made to previous construction methods whereby the ABS pipe must be cut to a point below the floor level, whereupon an adapter is fitted onto the top thereof to which the water closet is then mounted.

There is no known tool for accomplishing the cuttting of the pipe below the floor level, and at the present time plumbers generally use a chisel or some type of gouge to manually cut the pipe to the desired level. This leaves a ragged upper edge and cannot be accomplished with very close dimensions.

The present invention, on the other hand, is directed to an apparatus adapted for use with a hand drill or other rotary power tool, and which when used properly can accurately cut the pipe down to any desired level below the floor and achieve an even upper edge onto which the adapter may be better fitted. The apparatus includes a weighted pilot member having an upper surface and a cylindrical side wall, the diameter of which approximately equals the inside diameter of the pipe to be cut to prevent vibration of the tool during operation. Preferably two opposed cutting tools are received in radial grooves approximately 180 apart in the upper surface of the pilot member. The cutting tools extend outwardly beyond the side wall of the pilot a distance at least equal to the thickness of the pipe to be cut. In operation the shank is inserted into a hand drill or other similar means and the pilot member is inserted into the upper end of the pipe. The apparatus is then activated and cuts the pipe down to and beyond the floor level a prescribed distance, cutting away all of the pipe desired without harming the finished flooring and leaving an even surface on the top of the pipe.

in an alternate embodiment, when the apparatus is desired to be used with larger diameter pipes, a sleeve is attached around the pilot member, and the cutting tools moved outwardly within the slots so that they extend beyond the sleeve a distance approximately equal to the wall thickness of the pipe, the sleeve becoming the pilot member.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus for cutting off plumbing pipes to a point beneath floor level after the floor has been finished, thereby making it possible to cut the pipe accurately and smoothly.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an apparatus of the type described which can be adapted for use with varying sizes of pipe.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will be readily apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating the apparatus according to the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view taken substantially along lines 22 in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side elevation of the apparatus showing the adjacent floor and pipe in section to more clearly demonstrate the operation according to the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a side elevation of an aleernate embodiment of the invention illustrating the sleeve in sections.

Turning now to the drawings, there is illustrated in FIGS. 13 a first embodiment of the present invention. As the construction is commenced, the ABS pipe P is connected into the sewer system, and extends into the area which is to become the floor of the bathroom. The pipe is initially rough cut to a point an inch or two above the finished floor level, as illustrated in the dotted line position in FIG. 3. The sub-flooring F and final tile flooring T are then finished surrounding pipe P. It is at this time that the apparatus of the present invention is used to trim the pipe P down to the level shown in the solid line position of FIG. 3 below the level of the tile flooring T.

The apparatus 10 includes a pilot member 12 having an upper surface 14 and a cylindrical side wall 16. The outer diameter of said side wall is approximately equal to the inside diameter of the plumbing pipe P, whereby the pilot member 12 when inserted into the pipe engages the walls of the pipe and prevents vibration of the cutting tool during operation. It should be recognized that pilot member 12 may be either a solid cylindrical member or it may be hollow, as long as the outer diameter approximates the inner pipe diameter and the pilot member is sufficiently heavy to prevent vibration during operation of the apparatus. A shank 18 extends upwardly from upper surface 14 and provides a means for attachment to a hand drill or other power source.

The pilot member includes a holding means in the form of a pair of radial slots or grooves 20 spaced approximately apart in the upper surface 14 of pilot member 12 which slidably receive cutting tools 22 therein. Shoulders 24, generally parallel to slots 20 in the upper surface 14 provide an upstanding wall 26 through which a set screw may be inserted to adjustably secure the cutting tools 22 at desired positions within slots 20. It should be noted here that the apparatus might contain only one groove 20 with one cutting tool 22, however it has been found preferable to use two tools spaced apart approximately 180.

Cutting tools 22 are so adjusted within slot 20 that they extend outwardly from the side wall a distance approximately equal to the thickness of pipe 10 or slightly greater, whereupon as the pipe is cut to the described level, little if any of the flooring is cut away. If some of the floor is cut away, it is not detrimental to the construction, because the adapter which mounts atop the end of pipe P has a flange which covers the floor surrounding the opening.

An alternate embodiment of the invention is illustrated in FIG. 4 wherein cases where the pipe P is of larger diameter than normal, a cylindrical sleeve 30 having an outer diameter approximately equal to the inner diameter of the larger pipe and an inner diameter approximately equal to the outer diameter of cylindrical wall 16 is slid onto the cylindrical side wall 16 of pilot member 12. Set screws 28 are then loosened, cutting tools slid outwardly and again fixed within slots 20, so that the tool extends beyond the outer wall of sleeve 30 a distance approximately equal to the wall thickness of the larger pipe. The operation then proceeds the same as in the embodiment described above.

While preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited thereto and reference therefor is made to the claims for summaries of the essentials of the invention and of the novel combination of parts.

What is claimed is:

1. An improved method for preparing plastic bathroom plumbing pipefor the reception of a water closet wherein the pipe is first rough cut to a height above a finished floor level prior to the installation of the finished floor, said method further comprises trimming said pipe to a prescribed distance below the surface of the finished floor subsequent to the installation of the finished floor, whereby the final trimming operation comprises the steps of providing a rotary cutting tool having an exposed cutting edge approximately equal to the pipe wall thickness and a pilot extending from said cutting tool having a diameter substantially equal to the inside diameter of the pipe, inserting said pilot into the pipe with the cutting edge bearing against the exposed end of the pipe and rotating the cutting tool while pushing the tool longitudinally against the end of the pipe until a desired amount of pipe is removed, whereupon a portion of the pipe is removed cleanly and evenly to the prescribed distance below the surface of the tinished floor without disturbing the finished floor around the pipe. 

1. An improved method for preparing plastic bathroom plumbing pipe for the reception of a water closet wherein the pipe is first rough cut to a height above a finished floor level prior to the installation of the finished floor, said method further comprises trimming said pipe to a prescribed distance below the surface of the finished floor subsequent to the installation of the finished floor, whereby the final trimming operation comprises the steps of providing a rotary cutting tool having an exposed cutting edge approximately equal to the pipe wall thickness and a pilot extending from said cutting tool having a diameter substantially equal to the inside diameter of the pipe, inserting said pilot into the pipe with the cutting edge bearing against the exposed end of the pipe and rotating the cutting tool while pushing the tool longitudinally against the end of the pipe until a desired amount of pipe is removed, whereupon a portion of the pipe is removed cleanly and evenly to the prescribed distance below the surface of the finished floor without disturbing the finished floor around the pipe. 